The Northern Ireland Executive returned in February 2024 following a prolonged period of collapse. Since then, the institutions have appeared stable, including during some tricky political challenges, and Departments have made progress in some policy areas.

However, there are real and growing concerns about whether the Executive can deliver changes which benefit people here, particularly given the continued poor state of public services, the absence of proper improvement plans, and the failure to make collective decisions about priorities.

This report looks at actions against the PfG priorities and in departments, and offers strategic cross-cutting messages for Executive ministers.